Many types of flexible materials such as paper, plastic and fabric are coiled into rolls and shipped to an end-user or processor. Typically, the coiled material is mounted on an unwind stand which allows the web of material to be unwound in a controlled fashion so that it can be converted into a finished product. When one roll of material is consumed, the exhausted roll is removed from the unwind stand and a new roll mounted so that the processing operation can resume.
Generally, the new roll of material is mounted in proximity to the old roll, prior to expiration of the old roll, so that the lead end of the web on the new roll can be spliced to the tail end of the web on the old roll. When the old roll is nearly exhausted, the splice is formed either manually, or through an automated process.
Although forming the splice through a manual process generally is the simplest approach, and avoids the need for complicated automated splicing and roll handling equipment, manual splicing is often undesirable because the flow of the web of material along the feed path must be stopped during the roll changing and splicing process.
Through the years, a wide variety of approaches to providing automated splicing and roll changing have been proposed and utilized. Generally, however, these prior approaches have been more complex and costly than is desirable.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an improved method and apparatus for replacing and expiring roll of web material with a fresh roll of web material, and for forming an automated splice between the tail end of the web from the expiring roll and the lead end of the web from the new roll. It is further desirable that such an improved method and apparatus be capable of forming a splice while the web of material is being continuously fed along the feed path, or alternatively while the web is not being fed along the feed path.